I scream, you scream . . .

Gotta love summer fun . . . beach days, fresh fruits and veggies, staying cool in the shade while kids play in the wading pool, gardening (ok, that's my neighbors, not me), and ICE CREAM!  Sophia and I combined picking raspberries and making ice cream yesterday, giving us a sweet treat after lunch today.

We don't own an ice cream maker, so I have actually not made ice cream since I was a little girl.  Then I hit upon this recipe in the August 2012 issue of Women's Day that doesn't require one, and how could I not?!

3/4 pound fresh or frozen fruit (mash up or puree in a food processor)
2 cups heavy cream
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk (Mmm, scraped that can CLEAN!)
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract (No imitation here people!)

Beat cream, condensed milk, and vanilla in an electric mixer until thick, stiff peaks form (3-5 min).  Mix in the fruit, folding to create swirls.  Pour into freezer-safe container, freeze until firm, at least 8 hours.  Keeps up to 2 weeks.

Doesn't get much easier than that.  And having sampled the finished product, mmm good!  It's a great recipe to make with kids . . . Sophia got a kick out of watching it in the mixer.  Nothing like homemade ice cream made with berries picked the same day.  A little goes a long way and is very satisfying, so it isn't as bad for you as you might think.  This coming from someone who usually likes to eat an embarrassingly massive amount of ice cream in one sitting.

Let me know what flavors you come up with, and remember no cheaping out with the vanilla extract!

Sophia helping with "clean up."

So pretty!

Happy Fourth!

A little Fourth of July patriotism! I found these $3 pj's at Walmart, perfect for those slightly chilly nights that are right between winter 'jammies and a t-shirt. Combined with the flag Sophia got at the Memorial Day parade, this is one cute little guy! The best part was that it was not arranged at all, it was all Jude, right down to the army crawl. Love this kid!

 

Happy Fourth of July, all!

Back from sabbatical?

I know, no posts in June.

I guess I took an unannounced sabbatical of sorts.  It was out of necessity, as I have been crazy busy with around the house things.  I might not have taken such a break if I hadn't actually written out my to-do list.  But I did, and let me tell you, writing out the list is a BAD IDEA.  Don't do it.

Here's the list that has been completed in the last couple months:

~ Shower invites

~ Prime and paint porch ceiling

~ Make and send kid's birthday party invites (I totally cheated on that one this year and did e-invites instead of paper ones that take me ten years to make.  Haven't sent Sophia's out yet, but they are ready to go!)

~ Smash fake concrete bricks that are super ugly and falling apart off the front steps.  (Ok, so I hired my nephew.)

~ Paint front door

~ Pull off old weatherstripping, put up new, prime and paint.

~ Paint living room and dining room trim

~ Paint living room and dining room walls

~ Make gift for Sophia's friend A's birthday (Dress that came out so totally cute!)

~ Plant blueberry bushes (necessitating that I rip out the random plants that were there . . . )

~ Plant rhubarb (more ripping out of plants first)

~ Climb scary ladder repeatedly in order to paint outside window trim (Not sure how being scared of climbing up six feet into the air translates to wanting to go sky diving someday, but there you go.  I guess I have taken care of lots of people paralyzed from falling off ladders, but none from skydiving.)

Unfortunately, the list of to-do's still to be done is much longer.  Here you go:

~ Prime and paint porch floor

~ Paint indoor stairway trim

~ Paint indoor stairs

~ Paint outdoor stairs

~ Finish painting outside trim, including around windows, doors, and the entire foundation

~ Make curtains for living room and dining room (going to do burlap, it will look so good!)

~ Make pillows for the living room

~ Deal with mysterious hot water heater problem that is making my long luxurious showers much shorter and NOT luxurious

~ Paint upstairs hallway trim and walls

~ Make Jude's 1st birthday teddy bear

I guess the still-to-do list looks shorter, but trust me, it's longer.  HOWEVER, I am planning to be a little less insanely single minded about it as I have been missing my blog-outlet.  And I have a lot of ridiculous Sophia antics that need to be in print.  On that note, if anyone has any hints for keeping her clothed and in bed (yes, she can climb out of the crib now!), feel free to send them my way.